''The Delicacy'' is a 2020

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

about

sea urchin Sea urchins () are spiny, globular echinoderms in the class Echinoidea. About 950 species of sea urchin live on the seabed of every ocean and inhabit every depth zone from the intertidal seashore down to . The spherical, hard shells (tests) of ...

s and the divers who harvest them off the coast of

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara ( es, Santa Bárbara, meaning "Saint Barbara") is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coas ...

in the US. The film, directed by

Jason Wise Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Medea. He was ...

, premiered at the

Santa Barbara International Film Festival The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) is an eleven-day film festival held in Santa Barbara, California since 1986. The festival boasts screenings of over 200 feature films and shorts from different countries and regions. SBIFF al ...

in January 2020. The film premiered worldwide on May 20, 2020 on

SOMM TV SOMM TV is a food and wine streaming network launched in 2019. The network shows original films, such as SOMM, SOMM: Into the Bottle, SOMM 3, and The Delicacy as well as original series productions and educational content. It also shows licens ...

Synopsis

''The Delicacy'' follows several sea urchin divers as they engage in their dangerous vocation off the coast of Santa Barbara.

Cast

This film focuses on Santa Barbara sea urchin divers including Stephanie Mutz, Harry Liquornik, Jim Marshall, Wade Motyer, and Billy Eggers. Notable chefs also make appearances including Andrew Zimmern, Ray Isle, Justin Cogley, Kyle Connaughton, and Master Sommelier Yoon Ha.

Reception

The film received positive reviews with Josh Board of Fox 5 San Diego giving the film 3.5 out of 5 stars and writing, "Yet even if you aren't going to ever try this, the documentary is fascinating to watch" and, "3 ½ stars out of 5 (if these were Michelin stars given to a restaurant, that would make this the Citizen Kane of documentaries)."

LA Weekly ''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin, who served as president and editor until 1991. Voice Media Group sold the paper in late 2017 to Semanal Media LLC, whose paren ...

called it, "a mouthwatering excursion featuring California's uni divers and the chefs who sing their praises," Hollywood Outbreak said, "If you thought a documentary about sea urchins would be boring, think again." and

Larry Mantle Larry Mantle (born January 12, 1959) is a radio interview call-in show host in Southern California. He has been the host of ''AirTalk with Larry Mantle'' on NPR-member station KPCC (radio station), KPCC, 89.3 FM, since April 1, 1985. ''AirTalk' ...

on KPCC called it "a must see."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Delicacy American documentary films Documentary films about food and drink 2020 documentary films 2020 films 2020s American films